


Home is Where the Heart is

by breelott



Category: Supernatural
Genre: F/F, F/M, Fluff, M/M, literally just fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-06
Updated: 2020-12-06
Packaged: 2021-03-09 22:26:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,081
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27923761
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/breelott/pseuds/breelott
Summary: We're gonna pretend like 15.20 never happened.After they defeated Chuck and he got Cas back, Dean knew he had to get out. He couldn’t continue to put the people he loves at risk like that. He decided that day that he was done hunting. Fast forward seven years, Dean couldn't imagine a better life if he tried.
Relationships: Castiel/Dean Winchester, Eileen Leahy/Sam Winchester, Kaia Nieves/Claire Novak
Comments: 2
Kudos: 72





	Home is Where the Heart is

January 24th, 2027.

It’s 7:02 am and Dean is sitting on the front porch of the home he shares with Cas. He watches as the sun slowly rises from over the horizon. This is his daily routine. He never used to be a morning person, but after losing Cas and then getting him back again all those years ago, he decided life was too short not to watch the sunrise.

When Jack brought Cas back, it was without his grace. Cas didn’t seem to mind other than that he had to get used to human needs again. On occasion, he still complains about having to eat and sleep to survive, but otherwise he doesn’t mind.

Once the sun has illuminated their front lawn, Dean heads back inside and puts on a pot of coffee. Cas walks out of their shared bedroom moments later.

“Morning, sunshine. Want some coffee?” Dean asks, smiling at Cas’ disheveled look.

“I would love some, thank you,” Cas responds, walking over to kiss Dean good morning. “Happy birthday,” he says.

Dean smiles and kisses him again.

“Thanks, sweetheart.”

Cas sits down at the kitchen table and opens up the newspaper that Dean brought inside. He pulls out the comic section of the paper and lays it down across from him at the other end of the table.

Dean brings over a mug. Two sugars and a splash of cream, just the way Cas likes it. Sitting down across from him with a mug of his own, he watches Cas read for a moment before picking up the paper in front of him.

“How are the comics?” Cas asks.

Dean laughs to himself then looks up at Cas over the top of the paper.

“They get better every day,” he grins. “I’m gonna go take a shower. Care to join me?”

“Yes, please,” Cas says in response. “We have to be quick, though. Gracie needs to be up soon.”

~~

After their shower, Dean heads back to the kitchen to start on breakfast while Cas goes to wake up Alma Grace.

A few minutes later, he walks into the kitchen with a half asleep four year old on his hip.

Dean sets down the spatula in his hand and walks over to them. He puts a hand on her back and kisses her on the nose.

“Good morning, sweet girl. You hungry? Daddy made your favorite!” Dean says, smiling at her.

“Pancakes?” The little girl asks, perking her head up.

“With…,” Dean prompts.

“Chock-it chips?”

“And…”

“Spinkles!” The little girl shouts.

“Nailed it!” Dean says, holding his hand up to her for a high five.

Cas watches his partner interact with their daughter with adoration. He’ll never need more than this.

Dean leans in and kisses him before walking back over to the stove to finish plating the pancakes. Cas puts AG in her booster and takes a seat next to her as Dean brings the food to the table.

“So, Sam and Eileen and the kids will be here around three. Claire told me Kaia doesn’t get off work until five, so they won’t be here until after that,” Cas informs him.

“Alright, so I don’t need to start cooking until five or five thirty then,” Dean says, taking a bite of his syrup drenched pancakes.

“Dean, I told you, you don’t have to cook tonight. It’s your birthday dinner. Eileen and I can handle it,” Cas says.

“No offense, sweetheart, but I don’t trust you anywhere near a hot stove,” Dean laughs.

“Well, that’s why I said, ‘Eileen and I’. I’ll really just be there for moral support. I’ll be her cooking wing man,” Cas says.

Dean laughs, nearly choking on the food in his mouth.

“You mean her sous chef?” Dean manages.

“Sure, although I don’t know who Sue is or what she has to do with your dinner tonight,” Cas responds, matter of factly, taking a bite of his own breakfast.

Dean just rolls his eyes and huffs a small laugh at him.

“I love you,” he says.

“ I love you, too,” Cas says back.

“Hey! What about me?” Alma Grace asks.

“Oh, I love you the _most_ ,” Dean says, ruffling her hair. She giggles as she picks up another piece of pancake with her fingers and puts it in her mouth. “Someone is gonna need a bath when breakfast is over.”

“I’ll handle the dishes if you want to take care of that,” Cas suggests.

“Deal.” Dean gets up and walks to the other side of the table to unbuckle her. “Come on, miss thing. Let’s go get you cleaned up.” He picks her up, doing his best not to get syrup all over himself, and walks her down the hallway to the bathroom.

~~

Right around three o’clock, there’s a knock at the door. Cas goes to answer it and he’s met with Sam, Eileen, and their two screaming children who bolt into the house, nearly knocking Cas over.

“Guys, careful!” Sam shouts after them.

“Sorry,” Eileen says.

“They’re fine, no worries,” Cas signs back to her. “Come in, please.”

“Is Dean in the kitchen?” Sam asks.

“I’ve told Dean he is not allowed in the kitchen for the rest of the day,” Cas says.

“And how did he take that?” Eileen asks.

“He pouted, like the two year old he is, but at least he’s staying out of the kitchen. He doesn’t trust my cooking skills, however.”

Sam and Eileen both laugh.

“Well, lucky for us, we have a master chef at our disposal,” Sam says, wrapping an arm around Eileen’s shoulder and squeezing her into him.

“I don’t know about master chef,” she says, “but I think I can handle a birthday dinner.”

The three of them head towards the playroom in search of the kids. When they walk into the room, they’re met with all three children piled on top of Dean on the floor.

“Looks like you guys are having fun,” Sam laughs. “Happy birthday, Dean.”

“Uncle, uncle,” Dean says out of breath, smacking the floor in surrender.

The kids climb off of him and he sits up, breathing heavy.

“Thanks, Sammy. Good to see you,” Dean says, pulling himself up off the floor. “Hey, Eileen. How are you?” He signs as he speaks.

“I’m good, Dean. Happy birthday,” she says, pulling him in for a hug.

“Thank you,” he smiles.

“Claire and Kaia will be here soon,” Cas says. “Why don’t we head into the den and put on a movie for the kids?”

“Sounds like a plan,” Sam says.

~~

As soon as Claire had let Cas know that she and Kaia were on their way, he and Eileen started cooking.

“Knock, knock!” Claire says, letting herself into the house. “Where’s my sweet Alma Grace?”

“Cwaire!” AG yells, running into her arms.

“I missed you so much!” Claire says. “Can you say hi to Kaia?”

“Hi Kaia,” she says before shyly burying her face in Claire’s neck.

“Hi, Gracie,” Kaia tickles her, causing her to squeal and squirm in Claire’s arms.

Cas walks out of the kitchen in a flour covered apron to greet them.

“Hey, Cas. Nice apron,” Claire jokes.

“I missed you too,” Cas says, pulling her into a floury hug. “How are you two doing? Staying safe?”

“Always. Took out a vamp nest just the other day,” Claire winks. “Piece of cake.”

“Jody has us check in with her regularly while we’re on hunts. I think if we’d tried to go longer than two hours without at least a text, she’d send a search party,” Kaia reassures him.

“Good,” Cas says. “Well, let’s not spend the whole night in the foyer, come on in.

“Hey, hey. How’s my favorite twenty-something?” Dean says as the girls walk into the den. “And Claire, how are you?”

Claire punches him in the arm and then gives him a hug.

“How’s my favorite old guy?” Claire retorts.

“Hey, watch it. I am not old, okay? This one makes sure of that,” Dean says, rustling Alma Grace’s hair. She giggles and reaches for him to pick her up.

Claire laughs as she plops herself down on the couch, reaching out for Kaia’s hand to pull her down with her.

“So, you’re letting Cas cook?” Claire asks, making a face. “We might have to grab something after we get outta here,” she whispers to Kaia.

“Alright, alright. Eileen is cooking, okay? Cas is just there to look pretty,” Dean grins.

The three of them sit and talk for a while to catch up. Claire tells Dean about the hunts they’ve gone on since the last time they saw each other. Dean reminisces about hunts he’d gone on in the past. He tells them stories of the times he almost died and of the times he actually did die. He won’t admit it, but sometimes he misses hunting. He loves the life he has now and he wouldn’t trade Cas or Alma Grace for the world, but a small part of him misses the action, the adrenaline rush that came with going on a hunt. He gets to share his knowledge and tips with Claire and Kaia, though, and that’s enough for him.

“Dinner’s ready!” Cas shouts. Everyone files into the dining room to take their seats at the table. Eileen prepared a steak dinner with mashed potatoes, cheesy broccoli, corn on the cob, and buttered rolls.

“This looks fantastic, Eileen,” Dean says as he signs. Cas clears his throat next to him. “And Cas,” Dean says, rolling his eyes and kissing Cas on the cheek.

“I’d just like to make a quick toast before we eat, if I could?” Cas says with a glass in his hand. The room goes quiet while they wait for Cas to start. “Dean, knowing you has turned my world completely upside down in the best possible way. We’ve been through much together, you and I. But I wouldn’t want to do this with anyone other than you. Thank you for being the light at the end of the tunnel. I love you, happy birthday.”

Dean stands up and kisses him while everyone else shouts ‘happy birthday’.

After everyone finishes their dinner and birthday cake, they all head home. Dean and Cas sit on the living room couch together watching a movie, Alma Grace asleep on Dean’s chest. Dean watches her back slowly rise and fall as she breathes, running his fingers through her hair.

“You ever think about how lucky we are?” He asks, his voice just above a whisper.

“In reference to what?”

“If that woman hadn’t given her up. If Jody had put her in the system instead…,” Dean trails off.

“I try not to imagine any of that happening, Dean. We did get very lucky,” Cas says, placing his hand on Dean’s knee.

Several years ago, after spending so much time with Sam and Eileen’s boys, Dean and Cas decided that they wanted kids of their own. But, with Dean being legally dead and Cas not existing on paper, they couldn’t conventionally adopt. Fate seemed to be on their side, though, when Claire and Kaia showed up to Christmas in 2023 with a newborn. Dean jumped into defensive dad mode immediately and interrogated the girls, asking if they were sure they were ready for this and how they planned to continue hunting if they were taking care of a baby. Kaia tried to cut in and explain, but Claire grabbed her arm and shot her a look that said, ‘let him finish’. To this day, she still loves to rile him up.

After fifteen minutes of Dean going over the thousands of reasons why he thought they were, in fact, not ready to be parents, Claire informed him that this little girl was brought to Jody by a young woman who decided she wasn’t cut out to be a mom. Jody brought her home and they all agreed that putting her in the system would be cruel and that the best thing for her would be to go to a good home. When Alex suggested Dean and Cas, Jody got on the phone with Sam that night to make sure they’d be willing. “Merry Christmas, old man,” Claire said to him before putting the baby in his arms. “Don’t say I never did anything for ya.”

“She’s pretty perfect, isn’t she?” Dean says, unable to take his eyes off of her.

“Yeah, she is,” Cas smiles. How did _he_ get so lucky?


End file.
